Australian Writing Funny Letters to Friends

Pen pal letter writing is a fun, creative and rewarding way for your students to practice literacy and communication. Use our lesson plans, sample templates and/or join our Pen Pal Club to get started.

Join the Pen Pal Club

Looking for pen pals for your students? We can help you connect with other classrooms to write letters to, based on your classroom size, location and age group.

The Pen Pal Club is open year-round to Australian schools and early learning centres only, and is free to join.

Register any time, by filling out the form below, and we'll be in touch in approx. two weeks.

Explore the art of writing: lesson plans

What's the difference between a simile and a metaphor? What's a compound sentence, and why use adjectives?

Use our free lesson and activity plans to explore writing conventions – with the help of our pen pal characters Ruby, Jack, Maria and Ahn.

Inspire your students this Indigenous Literacy Day

Use our lesson plan to help students explore and develop their understanding of Indigenous culture.

Sample letter, how-to guide & templates

Find out how to address an envelope and structure a letter with our how-to guides.

Your students can use our letter writing templates, with Annie White's gorgeous illustrations, to write their pen pal letters.

Expert tips

Bestselling children's author and our letter-writing champion Morris Gleitzman shares his top tips on creating a great letter. Listen as he explains why, how and what to write about, and use his suggestions to craft letters that are truly special.

Video: Red AP branded header slide with white text reading: Morris Gleitzman talks letter writing.

Audio: Jaunty music

Video: Morris talks to the camera in a living room. He wears glasses and a blue button-up collared shirt. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: Hello, I'm Morris Gleitzman and my job is writing stories for young people. I've been doing it for over 30 years and so you won't be surprised to hear that I love words.

Video: The camera pans over a table full of handwritten letters. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: I would like to encourage everybody stuck at home these days

Video: Morris talks to the camera in a living room. He wears glasses and a blue button-up collared shirt. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: wondering perhaps what to do, to have a go at writing some letters. And there's all sorts of good reasons why this is a great thing for young people to do.

Video: The camera zooms into Morris talking to the camera in a living room. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: You could write to your heroes if you like. There are plenty of those around at the moment and how much would those people working long hard hours in our hospitals and medical centres enjoy having a letter perhaps from someone they only met very briefly or perhaps never at all. You.

Video: Morris holds up handwritten letters he's received.

Audio: As an author, I get sent a lot of letters. Hundreds, thousands over the years. Many of them these days come through email and social media. But the ones I really like best are the handwritten ones on paper. There is something really special about knowing that a piece of paper that you're holding in your hand only a few days or a couple of weeks ago had been in the hands of somebody who had something that they really wanted to tell you.

Video: The camera zooms into Morris talking to the camera in a living room.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: When we write a letter to somebody else that we really want to connect with and we do it using our own unique handwriting on a piece of paper. A piece of paper that will last for maybe hundreds of years if it's tucked into a dry drawer, that means that the person who receives that letter has got something very special, just from you to them, you will have made a connection that can't quite be made in any other way.

Video: The video fades into a white background that shows the red Australia Post logo.

Audio: Jaunty music

Video: Red Australia Post branded header slide with white text reading: How to write and post a letter with Morris Gleitzman.

Audio: Jaunty music

Video: Morris talks to the camera. He sits at a kitchen bench. He wears glasses on his head and a blue button-up collared shirt. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: Because some of you may not of had a lot of experience writing letters, I thought I'd just take you through a bit of a basic how it's done.

Video: The camera shows the bench that has a stack of papers on it and a cup of tea. Morris writes '27B Needabike Crescent Peddleton WA 1234 7 April 2020' on the top right-hand corner the piece of paper. Morris then writes 'Dear Santa', draws lines on the paper and writes 'warm best wishes, Morris.' Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: It's traditional, at the top of the letter, if you hope the person will reply to you, and they don't already have your address, to write your address. Now you see, I've put it up in the top righthand corner, that's a traditional place to put one's own address. So, it's not a bad idea to put the date on. Now when you send a letter you do need to put the name of the person who is getting the letter, so there's no misunderstandings.You'll see that it's on the left-hand side, just a little bit below where the address and date is. Then there is what you write in the letter. Now I'm not suggesting you send Santa a whole series of lines. It's just that each of us have our own message for Santa, and that's where we would put it. And, you also sign off with a little reference to your relationship with them. I think I'm just going to put, warm best wishes.And that's it.

Video: Morris talks to the camera in a kitchen. He wears glasses on his head and a blue button-up collared shirt. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: That is a letter, but to post that letter because when a letter is written by hand on paper, it needs to go into an envelope with a stamp.

Video: The camera zooms into Morris talking to the camera in a kitchen. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: There are two important things to put on your envelope. The address of the person you're sending it to.

Video: Morris shows how to address an envelope. He writes '27B Needabike Crescent, Peedleton' on the back of an envelope and 'Santa, Chilly Billy Lane, NORTH POLE, POSTCODE' on the front. He then puts a stamp on the envelope. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: And your address. Let's do your address first, now that goes on the back of the envelope, usually up the top. And by having your address on the back, it means the letter can be returned.  Most important of all, of course, is the address of the person you're sending it to. Santa. And the stamp, of course, goes up here on the top right-hand corner of the envelope. You can use any stamp you like, there are beautiful ones with fruit, fridges, lighthouses, all sorts of animals and birds, much better looking than my stamp.  And that's it. That is your handwritten letter.

Video: Morris walks up to an outdoor red street posting box to post his letter. He wears a hat, black sunglasses, a blue shirt and jeans. He gives the camera a thumbs up.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: Ready to be dropped into a post box. I hope you have many happy

Video: Morris talks to the camera in a kitchen. He wears glasses on his head and a blue button up collared shirt. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: letter writing and reading experiences through the rest of your life.  Happy reading, happy writing.

Video: The video fades into a white background that shows the red Australia Post logo.

Audio: Jaunty music

Video: Red Australia Post branded header slide with white text reading: How to write an interesting letter with Morris Gleitzman.

Audio: Jaunty music

Video: Morris talks to the camera. He sits in a room with plants behind him. He wears a blue button-up collared shirt. Morris Gleitzman:

Audio: In an interview recently, I was asked, what do I think makes a good letter?

Video: Morris reads from a piece of paper.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: And, this is what I said, my recipe for a good letter is heaps and heaps of real, honest, true, emotional, funny, crazy, serious, actual moments from our own lives and a little bit of spelling, but not too much.

Video: The camera zooms into Morris talking to a camera in a room with plants behind him.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I've actually been writing a letter here today to my Grandson, Jack. I live in Brisbane, he's all the way in Sydney and we can't travel to meet each other at the moment.

Video: The camera shows Morris' handwritten letter to his Grandson.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: So, let me read it to you. I'm sure Jack won't mind, he's only 2 and a half actually, so he's not yet writing his own letters. Dear Jack, how are you? Good I hope, I'm missing you very much.

Video: Morris reads his letter to the camera. He sits in a room with plants behind him. He wears a blue button-up collared shirt.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I hope you're having lots of adventures at your place, we are here. We had a huge insect invasion yesterday. Millions of flying insects followed a storm to our place and came in through the drainage holes in our window frames. It was chaos. I was very upset because I think they're the sort of insects that east socks. I was also upset because they reminded me of when you showed me the ants in your backyard. That was such a happy day. So was yesterday in the end. We opened the windows and played Beyoncé very loud and they all flew out. I think they prefer Rihanna.

Video: The camera shows Morris' handwritten letter to his Grandson.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I'm so looking forward to seeing you Jack. Just as soon as we're allowed to. Just thinking about that makes me very happy too.  All my love, Grandpa.

Video: Morris talks to the camera. He sits in a room with plants behind him. He wears a blue button-up collared shirt.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: Now, you may have noticed that I wrote this letter without using something called paragraphs. I just wrote it in one great big slab of writing. I'm now going to show you that if I'd used some paragraphs, it would have been just that little bit easier to read.

Video: Morris shows the re-written letter with paragraphs and gives a thumbs up.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: Here's what the letter looks like now I've re-written it with paragraphs. Well,

Video: Morris talks to the camera. He sits in a room with plants behind him. He wears a blue button-up collared shirt.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I hope you get to write lots of letters yourself. Particularly at the moment when we've all got a bit of extra time on our hands at home.

Video: The video fades into a white background that shows the red Australia Post logo.

Audio: Jaunty music

Video: Red Australia Post branded header slide with white text reading: Morris Gleitzman shares his favourite letters.

Audio: Jaunty music

Video: Morris talks to the camera. He sits at a table with letters on it. He wears a blue button up collared shirt.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I've pulled out some of the letters that I've received from my readers over the last couple of years.

Video: The camera pans over the table that has a lot of handwritten letters on it.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I get letters of all types. Some of them, some of them are long letters that have obviously taken quiet a while to write. . Others, others are pretty small. I get secret letters. I get illustrated letters.

Video: Morris picks up an illustrated envelope.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I get some people who love illustrating so much that they not only illustrate the letter,

Video: Morris talks to the camera with an illustrated envelope in his hand.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: they illustrate the envelope as well, which I think is a great idea. I, you know, Post people work hard and I think this will brighten their day a bit.

Video: Morris shows a card that has a burger drawn on it to the camera. He opens it to show what is written inside.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I get people who, who send me homemade cards which I love too. Here's Angus who says, Dear Morris, if you ever need an illustrator, I can help. What's important about a letter is not

Video: Morris talks to camera.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: its shape or its size. It doesn't matter if your handwriting is super neat or not so super neat, as long as it can be read. What's important about a letter is what has come from inside you, your thoughts, your feelings, the thing that you so much wanted to share with somebody else.

Video: Handwritten letters on the table are shown.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: So, give it a go. You've probably got a bit of extra time on your hands at the moment at home.

Video: Morris talks to camera.

Morris Gleitzman: Audio: I'm pretty sure you will have the necessary equipment, a table, a chair, a piece of paper, a pen, and your thoughts, your feelings, your imagination, your creativity. So, give it a go. Happy writing, happy reading.

Video: The video fades into a white background that shows the red Australia Post logo.

Audio: Jaunty music

The Pen Pal Club Book

The Pen Pal Club, a picture book written by Sally Morgan and illustrated by Annie White, is a great resource for teachers to frame lessons for the Pen Pal Club program. It follows four pen pals who exchange handwritten letters, learning about each others' diverse families and hometowns in Australia.

Frequently asked questions

Registration

No. All lesson plans, resources and activities are freely available to download on this page. Registering a classroom is only required if you'd like to be connected with another educator to get your students set up with pen pals from a different class in Australia.

This program is suitable for any Early Learning, Kindergarten or Primary School classes from Prep to Year 6.

Any educator currently employed by an Early Learning Centre, Kindergarten or Primary School in Australia can register their classroom to the Pen Pal Club.

When you have submitted your application, you should receive a receipt email almost immediately. We will then confirm your eligibility and if your registration has been rejected, you will receive an email with some reasons as to why your registration has not gone through. If your registration is confirmed as eligible, you should receive a match within 2 weeks.

An educator can register for the club more than once, however they must register each classroom separately.

If the educator starts teaching a new year level or class, they'll need to re-register for the Pen Pal Club and start the process from the start for the new class.

There is no cost in registering for the club. The only cost involved is in the postage of letters. The educator can choose if letters are sent all together to their Pen Pal educator's school for them to be distributed, or sent individually to each child.

The Pen Pal Club is an ongoing program open for registrations all year round.

At this stage, we're unable to accept home school registrations, but are working on a way to incorporate them into the program, keep checking back!

The Pen Pal Club is only available for Australian schools at this stage. We may look to expand in the future.

Finding your class pen pals

Finding a suitable class may take us a little time (likely to be around 2 weeks). If we cannot identify a suitable class in that time, you'll be notified via email and placed on a waiting list. Regular communication will be sent via email to keep you updated.

Although we'll do all we can to try and match similar size classes with each other, There are a few options here:

• If the class is larger, one of your students could have 2 Pen Pals.
• If the class is smaller, a few of your students could share a Pen Pal.

You can decide which way you would like this to work with the educator that you have been matched to.

Getting started

You'll be provided with the following details of your Pen Pal classroom's educator:

• Name
• Email address
• Phone number

This educator will also receive your details. You can then get in contact with each other and decide how you'd like to begin exchanging letters.

Some questions to think about are:

1. Will you swap information like class size, age range of students and school address to get started?
2. Which class will send the first letter and what date should that be sent?
3. How long should it take for pen pals to receive a reply in the mail?
4. Will the letters be sent as a class in one envelope for the educator to distribute or will the children send their letters individually?^*
5. Decide the process after the first round of letters.

^* This is at the discretion of the individual school in relation to the privacy of student information. It's recommended that the children write to one another care of the relevant school address.

It's recommended that each educator has a look over pen pal letters that have been received prior to distributing them to your students to make sure they don't include anything derogatory or offensive in nature.

If you haven't heard back from your matched teacher, you might like to give them a call using the phone number provided in the matched email. If you still have trouble reaching them and would like to receive a new class match, please re-register using the form above. Your registration will then start again, and you should receive a new match within 2 weeks. If you have any concerns, please email PenPalClub@auspost.com.au.

If you haven't heard back from your matched teacher, you might like to give them a call using the phone number provided in the matched email. If you still have trouble reaching them and would like to receive a new class match, please re-register using the form above. Your registration will then start again, and you should receive a new match within 2 weeks. If you have any concerns, please email PenPalClub@auspost.com.au.

This is up to you to work through with the educator you have been connected to. You can begin sending letters whenever you like.

This is up to you to work through with the educator you been connected to. You can begin sending letters whenever you like.

Further support and information

The following tools are available:

• Foundation to Year 6 lesson plans and activities
• Interactive whiteboard resources
• Letter templates
• Sample letter
• Addressing an envelope guidelines

The new Pen Pal Club picture book is also available for you to order from Penpalclub@auspost.com.au

To receive a new class match, please re-register using the form above. Your registration will then start again, and you should receive a new match within 2 weeks. If you have any concerns, please email PenPalClub@auspost.com.au.

The Pen Pal Club is only open for registrations of classrooms to Early Learning Centres, Kindergartens and Primary Schools in Australia. If you'd like your child to be involved, speak to your school to see if they have registered your child's classroom.

If you'd like to get your child writing letters at home, we recommend encouraging them to become pen pals with a family member or friend that lives at a different address so they can practice posting letters and receiving them in the letter box at home.

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Source: https://auspost.com.au/about-us/supporting-communities/literacy-education/pen-pal-club

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